Archive for September 20th, 2010

Last Week in the News
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Retail sales rose 0.4% in August after a revised 0.3% increase in July. It was the biggest gain since March. Economists had anticipated retail sales to rise 0.3% in August.
Total business inventories rose 1% in July, following a revised 0.5% increase in June. Total business sales rose 0.7% in July after falling 0.5% in June and 1.2% in May.
The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted composite index of mortgage applications for the week ending September 10 fell 8.9%. Refinancing applications fell 10.8%. Purchase volume decreased 0.4%.
Industrial production at the nation’s factories, mines and utilities rose 0.2% in August, following a downwardly revised 0.6% increase in July. Capacity utilization rose to 74.7% in August after a revised 74.6% in July.
The producer price index, which tracks wholesale price inflation, rose 0.4% in August, following a 0.2% increase in July. Core prices — excluding food and fuel — rose 0.1% after a 0.3% increase in July. For the year, seasonally adjusted wholesale prices are up 3%.
The Reuters/University of Michigan consumer sentiment index for September’s preliminary reading fell to 66.6 from 68.9 in August. It was the lowest reading since August 2009.
Initial claims for unemployment benefits fell by 3,000 to 450,000 for the week ending September 11. Continuing claims for the week ending September 4 fell by 84,000 to 4.49 million.
Consumer prices rose a seasonally adjusted 0.3% in August, matching a 0.3% increase in July. For the year, seasonally adjusted consumer prices are up 1.2%.
Upcoming on the economic calendar are reports on the housing market index on September 20, housing starts on September 21 and existing home sales on September 23.